DESCRIPTION

BEST Foundation organizes 4 regional, 1 national and 1 international tournament each year with the aim of providing Bulgarian students a platform to express themselves and compete in public speaking. Students compete in 5 different categories at our events - Prose Interpretation, Poetry Interpretation, Duo Interpretation, Original Oratory, and World Schools Style Debate - across multiple rounds where they are ranked by trained judges and receive written feedback based on their performances. Based on their ranks from the preliminary rounds, only a fraction of the students break to the semifinal and final round.

Regional tournaments are held once in the fall and again in the spring season so students have ample opportunity to compete and improve. Participating schools are split into two regions and compete exclusively against other schools from that region. Find out more here.

After the regional tournaments have concluded, students who have ranked high throughout the year qualify for the National tournament. The National tournament includes only the best performers from all of Bulgaria and is the most competitive tournament of the year. Find out more here.

BEST also organizes the Balkan Voices international tournament with the help and support of our sponsors - the American University in Bulgaria. Balkan Voices is exclusively an Original Oratory tournament that welcomes students from numerous Balkan countries. Schools apply to participate a month prior to the tournament. Find out more here.